For starters, Evernote is making the $20 app free. In addition, "We are committed, not only to making the Skitch Mac app more awesome, but also to bringing Skitch to every desktop and mobile platform under the sun," Evernote's Andrew Sinkov said in a blog post today.

That expansion begins with Skitch's first mobile app, a free download for Android, Evernote said.

"Our goal is to make Skitch a household name with everyone that wants to draw, sketch, annotate, doodle, sign, or highlight something," he added. The software also can be used to share images; 4.7 million currently are shared through Skitch.

Terms of the deal were not disclosed.

Evernote's service is available over the Web and as a native app for Android, iOS, Mac OS X, Windows, and other operating systems. It can handle text, audio, Web links, and other data, but Evernote wanted to improve how its technology deals with graphics, Sinkov said.

"For years, one of our most requested feature areas has been related to improved handling of images and annotation capabilities. Our users take and share millions of photos and screenshots already, but the experience isn't as good as it could be," he said. "In the coming months, you'll see tighter integration between Evernote and Skitch to let you easily draw, ink, grab screenshots, annotate and share your favorite memories."

Today, Evernote users on Macs can drag images to Skitch, modify them, then drag them back. "Our goal is to make this experience much more streamlined," Sinkov said.

About the author

Stephen Shankland has been a reporter at CNET since 1998 and covers browsers, Web development, digital photography and new technology. In the past he has been CNET's beat reporter for Google, Yahoo, Linux, open-source software, servers and supercomputers. He has a soft spot in his heart for standards groups and I/O interfaces.
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